His gentle tone made it sound like it was nothing but a normal and mundane conversation, but his eyes were laser-focused on her face, almost as if he was not going to let even her subtlest expressions escape his notice.Serenity pursed her lips and told him, "There's nothing to regret at all–it was my decision to do what I did in the first place, so I'm perfectly fine with it."Besides, even if she had told him earlier, she could still never give Lucas what he actually wanted, because the man that she truly loved was…As the thought crossed her mind, darkness flashed in her eyes.She used to love him so much in the past, but what about now? Was there any feeling left in her heart for this man?"What are you thinking about?" he asked, suddenly holding up her chin with his fingers. He hated it whenever there was that downcast look in her eyes because it made him feel like she was hiding something inside of her that he would never understand."Nothing," she replied."I want to hear
The feel of his lips on hers felt so real, yet the rest of her body felt like it was trapped in a trance.He held her chin in a tight clasp with his fingers, not allowing her to move away from him even the slightest bit. His lips felt cool against hers–they were so different even in that respect.His kiss was utterly domineering and unmistakably possessive, yet it was also tinged with the tenderness and desire that it used to have in the past.Serenity could feel her heart racing. For some reason, she now felt no desire to break free from him or even resist him at all. She slowly closed her eyes and responded to his kiss. Scenes from the past not only played out in her mind, but they also reminded her that some feelings never truly went away.It turned out that even though she kept telling herself she would forget everything, she still had not forgotten anything at all.When the kiss finally ended, Serenity opened her eyes and stared at the man in front of her."Why didn't you re
He raised his hand to gently rub the corner of her lips, gently wiping away the trace of water left from when she rinsed her mouth."But even if you really detest me," he said, "it still doesn't matter! We're husband and wife now, so it's perfectly natural for us to touch each other, right? For the sake of our kids, you'll endure it even if you're reluctant, isn't that true?"He then turned around and was prepared to walk away after finishing his sentence, almost as if he had no intention to listen to her response at all."It's getting late now," he said. "You should go to bed. I've still got some work to take care of, so I'll be in my study."But before he could take more than two steps away from her, he suddenly felt a pair of slender arms wrapping around his waist from behind."I don't detest you," she told him, burying her face against his broad back. "What happened just now was purely morning sickness, and I have no control over when I feel sick, but I know that at the very l
"Serenity," said Peter, "thank you!""But I didn't help you much at all," argued Serenity somewhat regretfully. "The main thing that helped your case was that video exposing Lynette's true intent. Besides, it was partly because of me that you were framed. If we never knew each other at all, then none of this would've happened."Serenity still wondered where that video had come from. Based on the angle of the recording, it seemed that the camera was most likely secretly installed in the car, but how did it end up in Lynette's car? And why was the video even recorded in the first place?None of this made any sense to her at the moment.Peter hastily denied, "No, no, that's not true! You've been of great help to me! If it hadn't been for you, I would've been worried to death when I was in jail!"Serenity knew, of course, that Peter was only trying to stop her from feeling guilty. She said nothing of it again after that and only helped him through the paperwork and formalities after b
Serenity gave Clara the name of the hospital before adding, "Why don't I pick you up and we'll go there together instead? I'm free now, anyway."Later, when a black car appeared at the entrance of Clara's apartment complex and she saw Serenity step out with the driver and a bodyguard by her side, Clara was even more perplexed. She turned to her friend with a confused look and asked, "These are…""Jack arranged everything," Serenity explained. "I'm married to him now, and I'm also three months pregnant."Clara's eyes grew big as saucers. With utter shock, she stared at Serenity and asked, "You… You're married and pregnant now?! With Jackson Valor?!""Yeah," answered Serenity. "Come on, let's get into the car."Clara still stared at Serenity when they settled down inside the car. She was still trying to wrap her head around what Serenity had just told her. Who would have thought that so many things could happen in just a few days?!"By the way, Clara, the trial for your case will s
But there was at least one piece of good news that day–Lisa's condition had somewhat improved, and she would be out of the ICU in two days. Soon after that, she would be able to undergo a second operation.After visiting Lisa, Serenity was taking Clara home, but halfway there, the driver suddenly stopped the car, which startled Serenity. She then quickly realized that the car had been completely surrounded by numerous other black cars.Then, a man stepped out from one of those cars and headed toward her. Her bodyguard, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, rushed out and tried to block Lucas from approaching the car door near where Serenity was seated.Lucas merely glanced at the bodyguard without any expression on his face, and moments later, his men stepped forward from behind him, and a brawl ensued. Jackson had indeed carefully selected the man he assigned to protect Serenity, but he was still helpless when fighting against so many men, and he was soon subdued.Lucas wal
But her words only drove a stake through his heart. "What about me?" he asked. "Am I… all in the past too?"Serenity turned to him and looked straight into his eyes, saying, "Yes. To me, everything that happened between us is all in the past now, so there's no need for you to keep dwelling on it any longer."He suddenly chuckled lightly and muttered, "There's no need, huh…?"His pain, his regrets, his guilt… was it all just unnecessary things to her?Just then, the car stopped right in front of the door to the mansion, and Lucas told Serenity, "Let's go. I've got something to show you."And so, Serenity followed Lucas into the mansion and then to the studio inside where he kept all his paintings, and the only thing he painted… was her when she was a little girl. There was a painting of her when they had first met in the dense forest. There was a painting of her when she had grabbed his hand in the nick of time to prevent him from falling off a cliff. There was a painting of her
The tip of her nose stung. Of course she had been moved by all the things he had done for her, but… perhaps it was just their luck that when they first met, she knew nothing about romantic love. All she knew then was friendship.And when they met each other again as adults, her heart had been conquered entirely by another person, so much so that she could no longer find any space in there to love anybody else."Yes," she answered him decisively.His eyes were full of pain, almost as if he had just been hit by lightning."How could you be so sure?" he asked her. "You only said that to make me give up on you, right?! Because you already got married to Jackson, and because you're pregnant with his child—that's why you gave me that answer, right?""No," Serenity denied. "Even if I hadn't got married to Jackson and not been pregnant, I would still give you the same answer.""Do you love him, then? Do you love Jackson?"He stared straight at her, almost as if trying to use the last en